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After going after a few "big" coaches I think this was a safe hire for the stated goal of integrity and offensive firepower. If he chooses the right staff it could be fun.
The search firm was used to eliminate all the coaches who are afraid to coach at Tennessee. The Vols play Bama, Georgia, and Florida every year. The Top Coaches in the USA want none of that. Heupel was the only one with the guts to accept the challenge!
It’s simple really, they wanted to explore their options without it getting out and embarrassing themselves. They figure no big names would touch us so we used the firm the explore that and once they all said no we went with plan b.
@@xQuantom So you're telling me that paying a firm $120,000 was just to say y'all tried, knowing that it wouldn't amount to anything? I suppose it makes sense, otherwise Danny White could be sued for Self_Dealing.
@@TheMacC117 they tried to throw money at someone hope they said yes, but knew it was unlikely so they did it to save face in the likely scenario it didn’t work. Also 120,000 isn’t a lot of money for an SEC team like Tennessee. Pruitt got fined more for wearing his head dress.
Well, a Tennessee team ranked 6th in the nation going into the Orange Bowl against number 7 and ACC Champ Clemson: Now the Orange Bowl is history with the Vols winning 31-14 and celebrating an 11-2 season. Not bad for a second year coach and a team that bought in, worked really hard, and told itself “We know we can”. Way to Go VOLS!
Well, it's a year later. I was one of the old (65 years old) fans that sad "Who?". Well, I here to say I'm eating crow. I had to look up White and Hype. I'm very impressed with the way each of these men have worked for us this year. TN was a freaking mess. Both are men of character and I see a change in out players attitudes and behavior. Wins will come, he is slowly going to bring us back to revelance. Pray they both stay long enough to get there. BTW, this old man loves the black and grey uniforms. I wish we'd get a flat black helmet with a bright orange power T.
And wow look at is now. I could not even image another coach. Heupal has those kids and all of us bought in and I feel like it’s only the beginning of Tennessee being great again
As a UT fan, I’ll back this hire until he gives me a reason not to. Outside of that, I’m excited to see what he can do with the offense. However, he really needs to hire a good DC. It all comes down to his staff choices.
Josh, Huepel went 12-1, 10-3 and 6-4 in 3 years at UCF. His 6 loses as a HC are by a combined total of 19 points... Jeremy Pruitt was averaging 20 points a loss per game...
What I see is: he inherited players from previous staff (Scott Frost's staff) and couldn't maintain that level of success. You think he's walking into 'Bama, Florida or UGA's roster at Tennessee?
@@David-li4uw We need to worry about competing with UK, SC, Vandy, and Mizzou first. We're facing serious sanctions and its all hands on deck right now. This is the hire we need right now.
Tennessee fan, here- As I've been since the Fulmer Era, just numb in regards to this hire...No opinion. It's just another 'wait and see' circumstance...🙄✌
I was hoping you guys would get someone who could beat Saban. Tennessee has been down for Saban’s entire tenure at bama; and that has largely contributed to his rise of dominance. When the SEC forced bama to drop Vandy as a perennial game in 1993, I thought that meant that bama would be playing competitive SEC schedules going forward - like everybody else in the Conference. Ironically, since 2007 bama would have actually played a more competitive schedule by playing Vandy every year in lieu of the Vols! It’s just pitiful!!
@@Andrew-mp9hu Best of luck to you and yours, as well...Fandom can be a bit difficult/tricky at times, but we stay the course. Infuriating, yes. At times (more often than not). Rewarding? Every now and again. Must be nice to be a Crimson and/or Clemson fan...Hoping we eventually get s better/expanded playoff system, though I'm kinda thinking that my beloved Vols will not be there sooner rather than later...🙄✌
@@ja3368 you are correct. Who would offer a job to somebody who said they are good where they are at? Lol. “ I’m good with my current coaching position, but thanks for reaching out.” UT: “ Great! We have offered you the role” Doesn’t happen. They evaluated the situation and role and passed. Only one person said yes, I’ll accept the role with all the conditions and situation involved at UT. So they offered Josh the role, know he would say yes. Similar to a job interview , they will offer you the role only if you express commitment on accepting the role “if offered” scenario.
Josh, you stated it perfectly for me. As a Vol fan for almost 40 years, I don't want to be negative (there are more than enough doing that already), but I don't know how positive I can be. I will support my team even if they go 0--12. I don't think that will happen, but I have learned that I can never rule out the crazy at Tennessee. I am grateful for the players sticking around and being positive. I hope he is able to assemble a great staff, but I think much of that will have to wait a year or two before it happens. Is it harder to hire quality support staff this late into the "silly season" or do you think they will wave enough money around to get some quality pieces?
I love this take heupel turned out to be the right choice and you were wrong Ik back and look about how I was right because a good offensive coach will succeed in the sec I knew that from the beginning. Please be more optimistic next time
He has done more with less. Runs explosive that will carry over to the SEC. He has coached a Heisman trophy winner in Sam Bradford and had Missouri with the #1 offense in the SEC in 2016. His teams have sustained an average of 42 points a game over a 3 year period. His offense's are on par with Clemson, Oklahoma, and Alabama. That's good company. His lone loss in 2018 was to a #11 ranked LSU by a margin of 3 points who went on to boat race everyone and win the NC. In 2019 his 3 loses were by a total of 7 points combined. 1,3, and 3. His offenses scored 34, 24, and 31 points in those losses. This year looked bad, but he had 10 players opt out and still managed to keep games respectable in those loses. Losing by 1 TD to Tulsa, 1 point to Memphis, 3 points to a #7 Cincinnati, which scored 12 more points than the "mighty dawgs" could muster against them. His only embarrassing loss came against a #16 BYU. If you average out his 8 losses it would be a margin of each game being lost by 6 points. Take away the 1 BYU game and it shrinks to a 3 point loss margin. For the most part, he is competing with the better teams and blowing out who he should win against. It's pretty telling when you avg. 42 points a game for 3 years and you still find a way to lose. What he needs is a better defense to help carry his team's. Definitely has potential.
@Eric Crawley In hindsight, Stoops made the right call with Riley, huh? In all seriousness, Trevor Knight didn't that offense any good in Heupels tenure there. The year he was fired, Trevor threw 12 ints compared to just 14 tds. Enter Baker Mayfield and of course things changed the next year
@Eric Crawley Heupel’s offense that year averaged 36 points per game. In their 5 losses, their defense gave up 37, 31, 48, 38, and 40........ Scapegoated
I have been a Tennessee fan since the mid 80s. Have the people who are upset about the university hiring coach Heupel been watching the same team I have for 12 years. Tennessee has great tradition but hasn't won a sec championship since 98. They have not played in the sec championship since 07. He's a damn good offensive coach and quarterback developer. Let's give him a chance. Tennessee fans need to understand that it will take time but I believe it will be entertaining football as they build back. Go Vols
Tennessee student and life long mega fan here, not what I was hoping for, but he’s bringing the offense Tennessee has lacked for so long, I hope we can get defense figured out too, whatever that situation may be. I’d be content with a winning season next year, even 6-6 if there’s a bowl ban headin our way. Crappy stuff we’re going through, I just hope he can weather the storm and make these next few years of sanctions not completely awful.
I don’t have any bad blood with Oklahoma at all you guys have been nothing but awesome. It was a good game tonight hope you guys the best I hope you guys win ur games as long as ur not playing Tennessee
Home run hire! QB play will be improved significantly. I'm not sure if NCAA sanctions are headed toward UT, but even if they are, when QB play is good everything else improves around it. His first two years will be extraordinarily difficult due to the circumstances of right now, but, he'll be given a chance to show progress. The transfer portal will be his saving grace.
I remember when this search started everyone talked about we needed a offensive minded coach, a good relationship between HC and AD, and a person with HC experience. All boxes checked in my opinion. Let’s go get some fire in this offense and develop our QBs.
Vol Fan here. Central Florida resident. I have seen firsthand what his offenses can do. The big question will be the adjustment to the SEC and can he recruit at a high level. Josh you said it best, let me think about this one for a minute.
The absolute most important thing Tennessee fans can do this time around is, if Heupel has a disappointing season or two while trying to clean up the mess he inherited, DON'T TRY TO FIRE HIM FOR NOT WINNING THE SEC!
He's a huge improvement who checks most of the boxes us vols fans wanted. Let's get behind a guy who knows how to scores points and at least not get blown out consistently!!
Life long TENNESSEE FAN here and with that all I can say is at least he won't start Guaranturnover every Saturday lol. Seriously though we will have to wait and see. Like the man said 2021 isn't going to be anything for us this year anyway. Ride it out and give him a chance. Hopefully, he will surround himself with talented coordinators, and who knows by 2023 we might be looking better than we thought we would.
The Vols issues are systemic, rather than due to a specific individual or single factor. NCAA violations are actually a symptom, not the cause. Coaching failures are a symptom not the cause. In fact losing is a symptom not the cause. Dysfunctional organization all the way down. Until Tennessee cleans that up they will keep disappointing.
given the relationships that our ADs and Headcoaches have had over the year i think having two that have history and get along is a good thing for us in the long run. if he even has an ounce of coaching in him and knows how to recruit we'll atleast be heading in the right direction.
I’m still stuck on the “rat”....nothing personal to who was the tattle tell but they either got what they wanted by burning it to the ground or they just wanted Pruitt and Fulmer gone at a VERY HIGH cost. Good show as always, I don’t know what to think about the hire. Little confused to be honest.
As a Tennessee fan I’m very optimistic about their latest hires. This past season the program was dysfunctional, and they probably can’t get any worse. Heuple doesn’t have the “big name” credibility, but like you said, we just need someone to keep us on the train tracks. Plus there’s probably already good chemistry between Heupert and Danny White, which bodes well for the culture of the program
I believe if he can get a really good DC. A good conditioning coach and surround himself with good recruiters than he could do really well. His offense is crazy. Led the SEC in scoring offense for Mizzou in 2017 and UCF was the only team in America to be top 5 in the country in scoring for 3 straight years. We just need a guy that can dial up some stops at times and we will win games.
@@noirxplorer3185 uga fan. Live in uga. Bunch of delusional BandWagon fans. Have fun remembering you title from 1980 cuz uga will never win one again. They got Mark Right 2.0
There is still a decent amount of talent left. Probably the best QB room a coach at TN has inherited since Fulmer with Bailey, Hooker, and Salter. The schedule isn't daunting next year either. TN could surprise people from a record standpoint in 2021.
Kiffin was never coming because he knows better than leaving a school after one year Freeze is unofficially barred from a power five job due to his violations Chadwell was also never an issue due to his ncaa issues at charleston southern Malzahn was never coming because steele was hired Herman has the same personality issues as Pruitt-hard to get along with Richt has health issues and is burned out Stoops was never going to coach against his brother who is the coach at kentucky No one who currently has a hc job at a power five school was ever going to come to knoxville due to players transferring and the likely ncaa recruiting sanctions White didnt really have many options
Guys, we have reports that Kiffin was actively lobbying the university for the job. He would have come if he got a call. Similar indications were float around about Freeze and I can kinda see what you are all saying about Chadwell, but when push comes to shove Tennessee had much more qualified guys on the table and left them for questionable if not childish reasons. Could Josh be the guy? Sure. But why pass on fantastic candidates who want the job AGAIN? I'm tired of seeing this and let's be honest with ourselves, is it really going to be different this time? Idk. But I've seen this song and dance before and I know where it's led every time before.
If Kiffin was willing to leave Ole Miss after a season, I would officially never want him near UT again. That would be twice he shit on a school after a season
Given the vols terrible situation I think this is a great hire. They've got to stop thinking that one natty over 20 years ago makes them some destination job. Focus on returning to being ok then you can be good then you can be great. But who am I kidding, they'll fire this coach in three years too after he can't deliver on all their unreasonable expectations.
When you have a bargain basement program, you hire a coach from the bargain basement. James Franklin could have turned this mess into a winner but Tennessee was too cheap. As someone who was a season ticket holder for 30 years and loved weekends in Knoxville as much or more than anybody, I'm through. I'm tired of this mess.
While I certainly agree that Franklin would get the program to atleast a consistent winning record (between 7-5/10-2) I still have to ask this question: is that good "enough" for the Tennessee fan base ?
I'm cautiously optimistic. I'm basing the optimism on his track record offensively. With way more talent than he has ever gotten to work with we should be good to go in that category. UCF's roster has ranked in the 50's and 60's and he's gotten them to play at a high level. When he was the OC at Missouri their roster was ranked 38th and 42nd in the country according to the 247 Team Composite rankings and those offenses were plenty effective in the SEC despite being the second to least talented. The Vols are currently 15th with the 15th ranked recruiting class coming in and a good set of QB's to work with. JG is finally gone for good.... Not sure about his decision making, recruiting ability and who knows if he can get a competent DC. His record trending down at UCF is a reason for caution and he's never really awed anywhere he's been, except maybe as a player when he was runner up for the Heisman. Here's another perspective. Can he be better than Dooley, Butch, and Pruitt? That shouldn't be that hard. The way I look at it is, those guys were so inept that they couldn't win at Tennessee! You have to REALLY suck to squander all the resources you get to have at your disposal at Tennessee! Will he make as many awful play calls as Butch in crunch time? Run a stupid gimmicky offense and not be able to recognize how good Alvin Kamara is and lose to Vandy with a team full of NFL players? Will he trot someone as awful as JG out there time and time again to throw pick 6 after pick 6? I mean most of Tennessee's problems have been from STUPID coaching, so as long as he isn't a total IDIOT we should at least be okay! Use that top level talent on an exciting offense, get a good DC and let's win ball games!
I like the hire overall. It’s not flashy but I think offense has been a huge issue for UT and Heupel is a very innovative offensive mind. His work with Drew Lock and Dillon Gabriel has been incredible. Overall if given proper time and adequate resources Heupel can make UT a contender in the East and perhaps years down the line in the SEC as a whole.
Holy God. Im so glad we have UT in the SEC. Because every time they make a move--ANY move--all i can think is how its really not that bad being an Auburn fan.
Tennessee didn't get any alarms what ties to the university why not hire Tee Martin he would help in many ways great offensive mine and if I'm not mistaken he won a national championship at Tennessee and probably could have got him cheaper cuz he really wanted the job
It’s not a bad hire but it wasn’t the homerun Tennessee needed. Hopefully he does well, but this shows how the job is viewed now that they couldn’t land a big coach despite having plenty of money
I would classify Heupel's time at Mizzou as a mixed bag. The "top offense" billing from that time is statistically true, but a great Missourian once said there are "lies, damn lies and statistics".
I've been a fan since Majors, and what many fans don't get is that we haven't been anything notable for about 15 years. You think you deserve top caliber coaches. But they believe they deserve better than you. I love my Vols, but the program has been a cluster**** for years. And now we're staring down the barrel of sanctions. None of the coaches being vetted wanted us. Be glad you got Heupel. Be damned glad. It's a step in the right direction, as is White, and they'll be good for the program. Get over your NC dreams for now.
I find it hard to believe this was their only choice, maybe the most familiar. I don't think any coach with options would have taken the job but Heupel seemed like he was trending more towards being fired at UCF than getting a P5 job. He took the best G5 program at that time and turned it into a middling program again. Jamie Chadwell is making 375k, you mean he wouldn't take 4 million to run that program? I'd rather take a gamble on a rising star. They played it safe, but I wouldn't be confident that Heupel could turn around this program and jump into more difficult recruiting battles
This is no lose situation for Josh. If he flops he can just say “Hey look at what I had to deal with”. If he turns the program around he can pick his next job!
Tennessee is a huge program with fans why would he leave a top 10 team with fans and money. You act like Tennessee is a awful school they have had bad years and a lot but still have a loyal fan base with plenty of money at hand
To me all this means is that Heupel is extremely well respected and has a very high ceiling and potential. This could be amazing. Also, it could be disappointing. Either way, I'm backing this and I'm putting a lot of faith in Danny white
Obviously it’s a little disappointing because all we were hearing were a bunch of big names. But realistically a hire like this is the best we could’ve done for our situation. His recruiting concerns me a bit, so he needs to have a staff full of strong recruiters. I do like his offense. I expect the offense to improve next year and games should be more entertaining to watch than pruitts grind-it-out old school style. I’m going to support him through all the sanctions we’re about receive and hope he’s the man.
Can't wait for football to come back to The Hill. Mediocrity has been the norm for way too long. We need to be back in contention and this combo is going to get it done.
I really feel like until we know what our limitations from the NCAA are going forward, I have no idea what to think. If they're not to bad maybe we have a top 15 recruiting class and a winning recored going into 2022, if they are really bad... well as AD White says I might need to text a buddy
Great analysis Josh but are you sure that this was actually the best hire for Tennessee? What about the coach from Coastal Carolina? I honestly thought that would have been the best move Tennessee can make.
Chadwell was probably never an option because of his ncaa issues at Charleston southern. White probably tried to go after him than was told no by sankey and the ncaa. Same situation as freeze
I think huepel should get us to where butch had us. Steele is a proven dc and his offense was solid at missouri and ucf so i really think it could work out well if they gel together. My only gripe is that danny white didnt go after any sexton clients especially jamey chadwell who i think is abt the same level as huepel
I really hope the NCAA bans a ton of our fans from returning, these have been some really awful times in the last several several years but the future is now, New athletic director and a new coach, bring in a solid guy to run the defense and I “think” (don’t really know) we will be fine....BUT this negative culture of Vols fans are making things way worse on ourselves, recruits see the negative things said and it does not help.. so your either all in or all out decide and let’s move forward with positive thoughts and actions and comments and if you out fine go pull for someone else the transfer rules apply to you to negative Vols fans enough is a enough... GO VOLS!!!
I grew up in Tennessee but I’m a Florida fan..Tennessee has the most loyal fan base I’ve ever seen. But if this team doesn’t at least go .500 this year I think the fan base will really turn their backs on this guy.
Lifelong fan since Fulmer era - I won’t knock the guy since he’s been a Vol for a hot minute and I’m intrigued by what he can do, but I was admittedly disappointed after hearing you drop James Franklin and listening to Danny White in his introductory presser - I want to like the guy it just feels too similar to what the past 3 coaches have been like when they were hired and I was more a believer in Pruitt at the start than I am today.
Last summer many experts had Tennessee picked as the sleeper team of the SEC east. Hard to believe that they went from competing to win the division to firing Pruitt, NCAA investigations and the hiring of a coach that just took UCF to a 6-4 season.
I am impressed with him as an offensive coach. I think the key will be getting a good DC like a Kevin Steele and a good defensive staff. I love the possibility of a more potent high-flying offense but that has to be matched with good defense to win in the SEC and, on both offense and defense, we all know how important the line of scrimmage is. I am trying to stay positive and assume this is the best hire we could make, given the state of the program. GO VOLS!!
If you give him 5 or 6 years he should be able to turn Tennessee into a solid mid level program. Winning Record, with a nice bowl appearance like the Citrus Bowl. Tennessee would be the Auburn of the East.
The reality is NO ONE wants the job at UT. Current coaches just don't think it's worth the risk and headache. Heupel was a safety net hire. History and trust along with literally a 3 year interview process with the AD.
You know I really thought they were gonna be smart about this hire and search. We needed a coach who has won at a high level of play against some really great teams. To be honest I think Jeff Ficsher has a much better Resume then this guy. I dont understand why you pay a searching firm 120,000 dollars to hire someone you probably intended to hire to begin with. I just cant bring myself to believe that this is the coach that's gonna bring us an SEC Title. Oh well. What's done is done. We will see if he can keep that 42 points per game average going while being in this division. Welcome to the SEC COACH. I never dreamed they'd move UCF to Tennessee.. oh well. GBO
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9:36 👍 but can you give us more, 🤏
Give the Strength of Schedule of the SEC
@@jawjackin6513 more coming on tomorrow night's show. - JP
We had no idea how this changed our program for the better.
He’s our coach now , and I’ll be behind him the whole way
I love this comment think on the + could be a 💎 in the rough
Yeah. Until 3 years down the road when he has 2 loosing seasons and looses to a G5 team or 2...
Go VOLS
Go damn vols
Same
After going after a few "big" coaches I think this was a safe hire for the stated goal of integrity and offensive firepower. If he chooses the right staff it could be fun.
Thank you. No one so far has mentioned the integrity of the program.
Fast forward a year and we are ranked #6 in the nation. Rocky top baby! 🍊
Oh it's fun bro
You hit the nail on the coffin
I cannot for the life of me understand why Tennessee needed a search firm to hire a guy their athletic director barbeques with on Sunday.
The search firm was used to eliminate all the coaches who are afraid to coach at Tennessee. The Vols play Bama, Georgia, and Florida every year. The Top Coaches in the USA want none of that. Heupel was the only one with the guts to accept the challenge!
It's due diligence a lawyer thing
It’s simple really, they wanted to explore their options without it getting out and embarrassing themselves. They figure no big names would touch us so we used the firm the explore that and once they all said no we went with plan b.
@@xQuantom So you're telling me that paying a firm $120,000 was just to say y'all tried, knowing that it wouldn't amount to anything? I suppose it makes sense, otherwise Danny White could be sued for Self_Dealing.
@@TheMacC117 they tried to throw money at someone hope they said yes, but knew it was unlikely so they did it to save face in the likely scenario it didn’t work. Also 120,000 isn’t a lot of money for an SEC team like Tennessee. Pruitt got fined more for wearing his head dress.
Well, a Tennessee team ranked 6th in the nation going into the Orange Bowl against number 7 and ACC Champ Clemson: Now the Orange Bowl is history with the Vols winning 31-14 and celebrating an 11-2 season. Not bad for a second year coach and a team that bought in, worked really hard, and told itself “We know we can”. Way to Go VOLS!
Fast forward now we are currently number 6 in the country 4-0 and beat a top 15 team on the road in Norman
@@tulsavol6653 fast forward 10-2 and in the first ever playoffs
Well, it's a year later. I was one of the old (65 years old) fans that sad "Who?". Well, I here to say I'm eating crow. I had to look up White and Hype. I'm very impressed with the way each of these men have worked for us this year. TN was a freaking mess. Both are men of character and I see a change in out players attitudes and behavior. Wins will come, he is slowly going to bring us back to revelance. Pray they both stay long enough to get there. BTW, this old man loves the black and grey uniforms. I wish we'd get a flat black helmet with a bright orange power T.
U must be feeling good after yesterday
And wow look at is now. I could not even image another coach. Heupal has those kids and all of us bought in and I feel like it’s only the beginning of Tennessee being great again
That was some very good analysis. We’re two years in and I think we have the right guy. GBO
As a UT fan, I’ll back this hire until he gives me a reason not to. Outside of that, I’m excited to see what he can do with the offense. However, he really needs to hire a good DC. It all comes down to his staff choices.
He has a really good DC in Knoxville rn. Aka Kevin steele
MysteriousOklahoma you are about to get me excited about our hire👀
@@chillr7733 get excite go big orange
Josh, Huepel went 12-1, 10-3 and 6-4 in 3 years at UCF. His 6 loses as a HC are by a combined total of 19 points... Jeremy Pruitt was averaging 20 points a loss per game...
This says enough right here 👆🏻
No comparison. His conference is cake.
What I see is: he inherited players from previous staff (Scott Frost's staff) and couldn't maintain that level of success. You think he's walking into 'Bama, Florida or UGA's roster at Tennessee?
LOL! Ok. I'm sure that will translate to games against UGA, UF, and Bama.
@@David-li4uw We need to worry about competing with UK, SC, Vandy, and Mizzou first. We're facing serious sanctions and its all hands on deck right now. This is the hire we need right now.
2years in and Danny White is potentially the best AD in America and the Vols missed the playoffs by 1 game. . . in year 2! 11-2.
Aggie fan here, hope nothing but the best for this coach however he is at the SEC table now. Sitting with the big boys. Goodluck Tennessee 👍🏼
As a vol fan thank you man we need some positive people I’m tired of all this negative crap but y’all have a really good program at Texas a&m
Thanks man we need hope! Hope y’all crush bama next season
@@dylanthomassalmond924 I hope so too 😬 🤞🏽
Good luck to your Aggies. Y'all got something serious being built down there in College Station. A&M is a sleeping giant !!
@@JulianRodriguez-sn6nr I hope you’re right Julian Rod 👍🏼 Good luck guys
Tennessee fan, here- As I've been since the Fulmer Era, just numb in regards to this hire...No opinion. It's just another 'wait and see' circumstance...🙄✌
We're in the same boat brother. Best of luck to the Vols.
Same here. I’m neither excited or disappointed...
I was hoping you guys would get someone who could beat Saban. Tennessee has been down for Saban’s entire tenure at bama; and that has largely contributed to his rise of dominance. When the SEC forced bama to drop Vandy as a perennial game in 1993, I thought that meant that bama would be playing competitive SEC schedules going forward - like everybody else in the Conference. Ironically, since 2007 bama would have actually played a more competitive schedule by playing Vandy every year in lieu of the Vols! It’s just pitiful!!
@@Andrew-mp9hu Best of luck to you and yours, as well...Fandom can be a bit difficult/tricky at times, but we stay the course. Infuriating, yes. At times (more often than not). Rewarding? Every now and again. Must be nice to be a Crimson and/or Clemson fan...Hoping we eventually get s better/expanded playoff system, though I'm kinda thinking that my beloved Vols will not be there sooner rather than later...🙄✌
So this actually didn't age well cause he has been fantastic.
All the big names said NO, so we are lucky 🍀 we got Josh to say yes.
This isn’t true. They offered the job to one person. They only contacted. Fickel, Franklin, tony Elliot, and huepel.
@@ja3368 you are correct. Who would offer a job to somebody who said they are good where they are at? Lol. “ I’m good with my current coaching position, but thanks for reaching out.”
UT: “ Great! We have offered you the role”
Doesn’t happen. They evaluated the situation and role and passed. Only one person said yes, I’ll accept the role with all the conditions and situation involved at UT.
So they offered Josh the role, know he would say yes. Similar to a job interview , they will offer you the role only if you express commitment on accepting the role “if offered” scenario.
@@ja3368 You're sure of that because you overheard every one of White's conversations during the search?
@@wcm68tn Wow! How did you know? That’s exactly what happened. Smh 🤦🏾♂️
Josh, you stated it perfectly for me. As a Vol fan for almost 40 years, I don't want to be negative (there are more than enough doing that already), but I don't know how positive I can be. I will support my team even if they go 0--12. I don't think that will happen, but I have learned that I can never rule out the crazy at Tennessee. I am grateful for the players sticking around and being positive.
I hope he is able to assemble a great staff, but I think much of that will have to wait a year or two before it happens.
Is it harder to hire quality support staff this late into the "silly season" or do you think they will wave enough money around to get some quality pieces?
This is one of the most Tennessee things I’ve ever seen
I love this take heupel turned out to be the right choice and you were wrong Ik back and look about how I was right because a good offensive coach will succeed in the sec I knew that from the beginning. Please be more optimistic next time
He has done more with less. Runs explosive that will carry over to the SEC. He has coached a Heisman trophy winner in Sam Bradford and had Missouri with the #1 offense in the SEC in 2016. His teams have sustained an average of 42 points a game over a 3 year period. His offense's are on par with Clemson, Oklahoma, and Alabama. That's good company.
His lone loss in 2018 was to a #11 ranked LSU by a margin of 3 points who went on to boat race everyone and win the NC.
In 2019 his 3 loses were by a total of 7 points combined. 1,3, and 3. His offenses scored 34, 24, and 31 points in those losses.
This year looked bad, but he had 10 players opt out and still managed to keep games respectable in those loses. Losing by 1 TD to Tulsa, 1 point to Memphis, 3 points to a #7 Cincinnati, which scored 12 more points than the "mighty dawgs" could muster against them. His only embarrassing loss came against a #16 BYU.
If you average out his 8 losses it would be a margin of each game being lost by 6 points. Take away the 1 BYU game and it shrinks to a 3 point loss margin. For the most part, he is competing with the better teams and blowing out who he should win against.
It's pretty telling when you avg. 42 points a game for 3 years and you still find a way to lose. What he needs is a better defense to help carry his team's.
Definitely has potential.
keep plying it up it will come true
@Eric Crawley In hindsight, Stoops made the right call with Riley, huh? In all seriousness, Trevor Knight didn't that offense any good in Heupels tenure there. The year he was fired, Trevor threw 12 ints compared to just 14 tds.
Enter Baker Mayfield and of course things changed the next year
@Eric Crawley Heupel’s offense that year averaged 36 points per game. In their 5 losses, their defense gave up 37, 31, 48, 38, and 40........ Scapegoated
I have been a Tennessee fan since the mid 80s. Have the people who are upset about the university hiring coach Heupel been watching the same team I have for 12 years. Tennessee has great tradition but hasn't won a sec championship since 98. They have not played in the sec championship since 07. He's a damn good offensive coach and quarterback developer. Let's give him a chance. Tennessee fans need to understand that it will take time but I believe it will be entertaining football as they build back. Go Vols
LOL! This aged well! So that AD is now a huge hero.
Tennessee student and life long mega fan here, not what I was hoping for, but he’s bringing the offense Tennessee has lacked for so long, I hope we can get defense figured out too, whatever that situation may be. I’d be content with a winning season next year, even 6-6 if there’s a bowl ban headin our way. Crappy stuff we’re going through, I just hope he can weather the storm and make these next few years of sanctions not completely awful.
Must be torture .
@@chipplylar7006 not anymore but for auburn idk
As a big OU fan, Heupel deserves this more than anything. Hope he succeeds with the Vols!!!
🤝
I don’t have any bad blood with Oklahoma at all you guys have been nothing but awesome. It was a good game tonight hope you guys the best I hope you guys win ur games as long as ur not playing Tennessee
Me coming out from under my rock:
Tennessee hires Josh Heupal
Me: we fired Pruitt? 😯
Home run hire! QB play will be improved significantly.
I'm not sure if NCAA sanctions are headed toward UT, but even if they are, when QB play is good everything else improves around it. His first two years will be extraordinarily difficult due to the circumstances of right now, but, he'll be given a chance to show progress. The transfer portal will be his saving grace.
You are goosd at looking into your crystal ball!! GBO.
Watching this after Tennessee just beat Alabama, currently Ranked 3rd in the country, and has the no. 1 offense in the country. Wow. What a great hire
So far so good! Was a confusing hire at the time but it's safe to say he gets an A+ so far
I remember when this search started everyone talked about we needed a offensive minded coach, a good relationship between HC and AD, and a person with HC experience. All boxes checked in my opinion. Let’s go get some fire in this offense and develop our QBs.
Vol Fan here. Central Florida resident. I have seen firsthand what his offenses can do. The big question will be the adjustment to the SEC and can he recruit at a high level. Josh you said it best, let me think about this one for a minute.
@Eric Crawley this aged nicely
The absolute most important thing Tennessee fans can do this time around is, if Heupel has a disappointing season or two while trying to clean up the mess he inherited, DON'T TRY TO FIRE HIM FOR NOT WINNING THE SEC!
We might win the sec
Who knew that he would bring the fire with him ? What a blessing
He's a huge improvement who checks most of the boxes us vols fans wanted. Let's get behind a guy who knows how to scores points and at least not get blown out consistently!!
FINALLY an offense! We may even play 4 quarters!
As a Sooner Born ,bred,and dead fan Josh is a legend he is the qb that turned it around for us. He would of been the next head coach if not for Riley.
Bama fan here, two words "DUMPSTER FIRE".
YEP
Tennessee punished themselves.
Yep
UT Fan here. This is this first year I am looking forward to fall weddings.
You’re a funny guy. I like this comment.
I’m pick up another hobby like drugs. Xanax should put me to sleep just like our offense does
Life long TENNESSEE FAN here and with that all I can say is at least he won't start Guaranturnover every Saturday lol. Seriously though we will have to wait and see. Like the man said 2021 isn't going to be anything for us this year anyway. Ride it out and give him a chance. Hopefully, he will surround himself with talented coordinators, and who knows by 2023 we might be looking better than we thought we would.
In 2023 we’re looking better than we ever thought we would!
I think he can be a good hire depending on who he gets for a defensive staff.
I wish the best for Tennessee, as a Florida fan we need the east to continue to get better. So hope this works for yall
So far so good
The Vols issues are systemic, rather than due to a specific individual or single factor. NCAA violations are actually a symptom, not the cause. Coaching failures are a symptom not the cause. In fact losing is a symptom not the cause. Dysfunctional organization all the way down. Until Tennessee cleans that up they will keep disappointing.
Whelp, we’ve basically restarted our program from scratch, so there ya go😂
Disagree. TWO specific individuals have taken care of the so called systemic issues - White and Heupel.
As a ole miss fan Tennessee reminds me of when ole miss was going thought ncaa issues
Yeah, just worse
Im hearing Jeff Lebby is the current FAV for next UCF coach
@@tobiramasenju9321 lebby as O.C at TN
given the relationships that our ADs and Headcoaches have had over the year i think having two that have history and get along is a good thing for us in the long run. if he even has an ounce of coaching in him and knows how to recruit we'll atleast be heading in the right direction.
The best in college football reporting.
Very hopeful and just exhausted as a fan.
I’m still stuck on the “rat”....nothing personal to who was the tattle tell but they either got what they wanted by burning it to the ground or they just wanted Pruitt and Fulmer gone at a VERY HIGH cost.
Good show as always, I don’t know what to think about the hire. Little confused to be honest.
As a Tennessee fan I’m very optimistic about their latest hires. This past season the program was dysfunctional, and they probably can’t get any worse. Heuple doesn’t have the “big name” credibility, but like you said, we just need someone to keep us on the train tracks. Plus there’s probably already good chemistry between Heupert and Danny White, which bodes well for the culture of the program
I believe if he can get a really good DC. A good conditioning coach and surround himself with good recruiters than he could do really well. His offense is crazy. Led the SEC in scoring offense for Mizzou in 2017 and UCF was the only team in America to be top 5 in the country in scoring for 3 straight years. We just need a guy that can dial up some stops at times and we will win games.
It's actually not impressive at all
@@noirxplorer3185 uga fan. Live in uga. Bunch of delusional BandWagon fans. Have fun remembering you title from 1980 cuz uga will never win one again. They got Mark Right 2.0
There is still a decent amount of talent left. Probably the best QB room a coach at TN has inherited since Fulmer with Bailey, Hooker, and Salter. The schedule isn't daunting next year either. TN could surprise people from a record standpoint in 2021.
Four words. Kiffin, Freeze, Chadwell, and why?
he was never coming. ncaa sanctions. unproven and not a stellar record (I still would have liked him though.)
They probably said no because of the looming sanctions.
Kiffin was never coming because he knows better than leaving a school after one year
Freeze is unofficially barred from a power five job due to his violations
Chadwell was also never an issue due to his ncaa issues at charleston southern
Malzahn was never coming because steele was hired
Herman has the same personality issues as Pruitt-hard to get along with
Richt has health issues and is burned out
Stoops was never going to coach against his brother who is the coach at kentucky
No one who currently has a hc job at a power five school was ever going to come to knoxville due to players transferring and the likely ncaa recruiting sanctions
White didnt really have many options
Guys, we have reports that Kiffin was actively lobbying the university for the job. He would have come if he got a call. Similar indications were float around about Freeze and I can kinda see what you are all saying about Chadwell, but when push comes to shove Tennessee had much more qualified guys on the table and left them for questionable if not childish reasons. Could Josh be the guy? Sure. But why pass on fantastic candidates who want the job AGAIN? I'm tired of seeing this and let's be honest with ourselves, is it really going to be different this time? Idk. But I've seen this song and dance before and I know where it's led every time before.
If Kiffin was willing to leave Ole Miss after a season, I would officially never want him near UT again. That would be twice he shit on a school after a season
Magnificent hire. We need a change of pace on offense.
Given the vols terrible situation I think this is a great hire. They've got to stop thinking that one natty over 20 years ago makes them some destination job. Focus on returning to being ok then you can be good then you can be great. But who am I kidding, they'll fire this coach in three years too after he can't deliver on all their unreasonable expectations.
When you have a bargain basement program, you hire a coach from the bargain basement. James Franklin could have turned this mess into a winner but Tennessee was too cheap. As someone who was a season ticket holder for 30 years and loved weekends in Knoxville as much or more than anybody, I'm through. I'm tired of this mess.
While I certainly agree that Franklin would get the program to atleast a consistent winning record (between 7-5/10-2) I still have to ask this question: is that good "enough" for the Tennessee fan base ?
I'm cautiously optimistic.
I'm basing the optimism on his track record offensively. With way more talent than he has ever gotten to work with we should be good to go in that category.
UCF's roster has ranked in the 50's and 60's and he's gotten them to play at a high level.
When he was the OC at Missouri their roster was ranked 38th and 42nd in the country according to the 247 Team Composite rankings and those offenses were plenty effective in the SEC despite being the second to least talented.
The Vols are currently 15th with the 15th ranked recruiting class coming in and a good set of QB's to work with. JG is finally gone for good....
Not sure about his decision making, recruiting ability and who knows if he can get a competent DC. His record trending down at UCF is a reason for caution and he's never really awed anywhere he's been, except maybe as a player when he was runner up for the Heisman.
Here's another perspective.
Can he be better than Dooley, Butch, and Pruitt? That shouldn't be that hard. The way I look at it is, those guys were so inept that they couldn't win at Tennessee! You have to REALLY suck to squander all the resources you get to have at your disposal at Tennessee!
Will he make as many awful play calls as Butch in crunch time? Run a stupid gimmicky offense and not be able to recognize how good Alvin Kamara is and lose to Vandy with a team full of NFL players?
Will he trot someone as awful as JG out there time and time again to throw pick 6 after pick 6?
I mean most of Tennessee's problems have been from STUPID coaching, so as long as he isn't a total IDIOT we should at least be okay!
Use that top level talent on an exciting offense, get a good DC and let's win ball games!
I like the hire overall. It’s not flashy but I think offense has been a huge issue for UT and Heupel is a very innovative offensive mind. His work with Drew Lock and Dillon Gabriel has been incredible. Overall if given proper time and adequate resources Heupel can make UT a contender in the East and perhaps years down the line in the SEC as a whole.
Two years in and I’d say we’re already contenders in the east, if not more.
Holy God. Im so glad we have UT in the SEC. Because every time they make a move--ANY move--all i can think is how its really not that bad being an Auburn fan.
What a difference a year makes!
One of the better sports talk shows
You might add that Heupel won a nat'l championship at Oklahoma too.
Tennessee didn't get any alarms what ties to the university why not hire Tee Martin he would help in many ways great offensive mine and if I'm not mistaken he won a national championship at Tennessee and probably could have got him cheaper cuz he really wanted the job
As a Tennessee fan, I think if heupel can retain Kevin Steele as DC and hire a quality staff I think this is a good hire
I've been a Tennessee fan for my whole life. Thirty years now. I'm not over the moon about this hire, but it ought to be exciting anyway.
Hindsight from 2022: Heupel was a great hire.
Glad they didn’t pick up James franklin
Lincoln Riley: I'll trade you Josh Heupel for Wanya Morris, Keshawn Lawrence, and Eric Gray.
Hard pass. CYA in 2024!
Deal, Oh wait he at USC now and Josh about to smash OU at home.
As a lifelong Tennessee fan, I am pulling for Heupel, but what a damn clusterfluck.smh
It’s not a bad hire but it wasn’t the homerun Tennessee needed. Hopefully he does well, but this shows how the job is viewed now that they couldn’t land a big coach despite having plenty of money
problem is ,they are not going to pay anybody that money . typical tenn.
Simply depends on what we can do at defense. I have no doubt we will score more points. But doesn't matter if we can't stop anyone.
Tennessee defense sucked before coach Huepel. Couldn't stop anything over the middle.
I would classify Heupel's time at Mizzou as a mixed bag. The "top offense" billing from that time is statistically true, but a great Missourian once said there are "lies, damn lies and statistics".
I've been a fan since Majors, and what many fans don't get is that we haven't been anything notable for about 15 years. You think you deserve top caliber coaches. But they believe they deserve better than you. I love my Vols, but the program has been a cluster**** for years. And now we're staring down the barrel of sanctions. None of the coaches being vetted wanted us. Be glad you got Heupel. Be damned glad. It's a step in the right direction, as is White, and they'll be good for the program. Get over your NC dreams for now.
I find it hard to believe this was their only choice, maybe the most familiar. I don't think any coach with options would have taken the job but Heupel seemed like he was trending more towards being fired at UCF than getting a P5 job. He took the best G5 program at that time and turned it into a middling program again.
Jamie Chadwell is making 375k, you mean he wouldn't take 4 million to run that program? I'd rather take a gamble on a rising star. They played it safe, but I wouldn't be confident that Heupel could turn around this program and jump into more difficult recruiting battles
I think this will work out fine for Tennessee. I’m actually more curious how UCF fans feel. Does it feel like Heupel abandoned the team?
This is no lose situation for Josh. If he flops he can just say “Hey look at what I had to deal with”. If he turns the program around he can pick his next job!
Tennessee is a huge program with fans why would he leave a top 10 team with fans and money. You act like Tennessee is a awful school they have had bad years and a lot but still have a loyal fan base with plenty of money at hand
To me all this means is that Heupel is extremely well respected and has a very high ceiling and potential. This could be amazing. Also, it could be disappointing. Either way, I'm backing this and I'm putting a lot of faith in Danny white
Looky looky - has worked out pretty damn good
Optimistic about Heupel. I believe offense will be a lot better but his success will dependent on who his DC is
Obviously it’s a little disappointing because all we were hearing were a bunch of big names. But realistically a hire like this is the best we could’ve done for our situation. His recruiting concerns me a bit, so he needs to have a staff full of strong recruiters. I do like his offense. I expect the offense to improve next year and games should be more entertaining to watch than pruitts grind-it-out old school style. I’m going to support him through all the sanctions we’re about receive and hope he’s the man.
I heard that the georgia state coach is available
He already has one win in knoxville
Can't wait for football to come back to The Hill. Mediocrity has been the norm for way too long. We need to be back in contention and this combo is going to get it done.
This is a good hire
Given the circumstances, I agree. But most Vawl fans won’t see it that way
I really feel like until we know what our limitations from the NCAA are going forward, I have no idea what to think. If they're not to bad maybe we have a top 15 recruiting class and a winning recored going into 2022, if they are really bad... well as AD White says I might need to text a buddy
I am here from the fUTure and this hire was the best home run hire that could have been possibly made.
Some fans are calling it a “give up” hire. Season tickets are supposedly plummeting.
My sense he’s the Mike Shula hire.
I'm proud of you Josh
Great analysis Josh but are you sure that this was actually the best hire for Tennessee? What about the coach from Coastal Carolina? I honestly thought that would have been the best move Tennessee can make.
Chadwell was probably never an option because of his ncaa issues at Charleston southern. White probably tried to go after him than was told no by sankey and the ncaa. Same situation as freeze
they have near identical records
Don't believe JC was ever an option because of past NCAA issues. - JP
I'm excited for the Offense
As a Tennessee fan i didn’t know what to think when I firsT saw this. But on the bright side, maybe he can help the offense because boy it needs it
Unlike the court of public opinion, I'm gonna wait and see how he does before passing judgment.
he’s growing on me
I think huepel should get us to where butch had us. Steele is a proven dc and his offense was solid at missouri and ucf so i really think it could work out well if they gel together. My only gripe is that danny white didnt go after any sexton clients especially jamey chadwell who i think is abt the same level as huepel
I really hope the NCAA bans a ton of our fans from returning, these have been some really awful times in the last several several years but the future is now, New athletic director and a new coach, bring in a solid guy to run the defense and I “think” (don’t really know) we will be fine....BUT this negative culture of Vols fans are making things way worse on ourselves, recruits see the negative things said and it does not help.. so your either all in or all out decide and let’s move forward with positive thoughts and actions and comments and if you out fine go pull for someone else the transfer rules apply to you to negative Vols fans enough is a enough... GO VOLS!!!
The best in the business 💯👏🏾
Best hire, arguably, of any team in recent history
Who?
I grew up in Tennessee but I’m a Florida fan..Tennessee has the most loyal fan base I’ve ever seen. But if this team doesn’t at least go .500 this year I think the fan base will really turn their backs on this guy.
Looking back now it was such a great hire 🎉🎉
Lifelong fan since Fulmer era - I won’t knock the guy since he’s been a Vol for a hot minute and I’m intrigued by what he can do, but I was admittedly disappointed after hearing you drop James Franklin and listening to Danny White in his introductory presser - I want to like the guy it just feels too similar to what the past 3 coaches have been like when they were hired and I was more a believer in Pruitt at the start than I am today.
Last summer many experts had Tennessee picked as the sleeper team of the SEC east. Hard to believe that they went from competing to win the division to firing Pruitt, NCAA investigations and the hiring of a coach that just took UCF to a 6-4 season.
I am impressed with him as an offensive coach. I think the key will be getting a good DC like a Kevin Steele and a good defensive staff. I love the possibility of a more potent high-flying offense but that has to be matched with good defense to win in the SEC and, on both offense and defense, we all know how important the line of scrimmage is. I am trying to stay positive and assume this is the best hire we could make, given the state of the program. GO VOLS!!
If you give him 5 or 6 years he should be able to turn Tennessee into a solid mid level program. Winning Record, with a nice bowl appearance like the Citrus Bowl.
Tennessee would be the Auburn of the East.
he picked up tennessee football and put us on his shoulders
Regardless how the rest of the season ends up, beating Florida bama and lay in one season is legendary
The reality is NO ONE wants the job at UT. Current coaches just don't think it's worth the risk and headache.
Heupel was a safety net hire. History and trust along with literally a 3 year interview process with the AD.
You know I really thought they were gonna be smart about this hire and search. We needed a coach who has won at a high level of play against some really great teams. To be honest I think Jeff Ficsher has a much better Resume then this guy. I dont understand why you pay a searching firm 120,000 dollars to hire someone you probably intended to hire to begin with. I just cant bring myself to believe that this is the coach that's gonna bring us an SEC Title. Oh well. What's done is done. We will see if he can keep that 42 points per game average going while being in this division. Welcome to the SEC COACH. I never dreamed they'd move UCF to Tennessee.. oh well. GBO